Inside Politics - March 2005

Shall We Dance?

What Steps Will Legislature Follow?

by Jennifer Crowe

Every two years we all do the same dance. Those of us who, by choice or by profession, gather in Carson City every other year are always quietly, yet fervently, holding out hope that some day, some cycle, the steps to that dance will change. Perhaps instead of the waltz, we can all do the samba! We continue to hope. And we continue to be disappointed.

What else can you feel in the face of such repetition? It’s all so predictable. Here’s the waltz version.

Governor gives State of the State speech, which pretty much maintains the status quo, with a few flashy ideas to appease various factions, like gaming, teachers or state workers. However, this year state workers weren’t on the appeasement list – Governor Kenny Guinn proposes cutting retiree healthcare benefits to future state workers, making the job crunch even worse.

Legislators criticize the governor for going too far or not far enough in solving the state’s problems. This year he did both, going too far in offering a vehicle registration rebate to citizens, and not far enough in failing to offer even an idea to address what many see as a big issue: property taxes.

Pre-session budget hearings begin at the Legislature, and we’re all reminded that there isn’t much opportunity to do anything creative when only 15 percent of the budget is discretionary spending. The rest of it is locked in federal matching grants, Medicaid, highways, public safety, etc.

In good years like this one, a budget surplus has everyone salivating at the possibilities and jockeying for position to get their slice of it. Education is more important than healthcare, which is more important than highway funding, which is more important than tax rebates – depending on whom you ask.

Some legislators will talk about big ideas, and some important bills will pass that actually impact the lives of people in Nevada. But for the most part, those big ideas and big changes are few and far between.

But it’s the possibility of those big ideas and big changes that keep many interested in what can be a rather dull process. It doesn’t have to be that way. Consider a samba-style session.

Everybody’s favorite topic: Education. A real conversation about improving public schools needs to include phrases like longer school year, merit pay, full-day kindergarten, broader curriculum, customized learning approaches and demonstrated achievement.

Health insurance is an even bigger issue. Retirees can’t afford it, young and poor people don’t have it, businesses can’t afford to provide it to their employees, and self-employed people can’t get it. But we all agree that everyone needs it.

Higher education is key to our state’s economic future, yet we consistently fund our universities and community colleges at less than 80 percent. Our state needs more nurses and teachers, and our schools need new facilities to keep up with the demand. The Millennium Scholarships are critical to ensure quality doesn’t suffer as our system grows.

Social service funding has rebounded to levels achieved before the massive cuts of the early 1990s, but that still puts it 15 years behind growth and inflation. Mental health and substance-abuse funding particularly have not kept pace, despite the increased demand on these services.

Property tax modifications undoubtedly will impact more citizens than just about any other issue. How to balance the benefits homeowners are reaping in a growing real estate market with the unfairness of taxing senior citizens out of their homes is a fair question that needs a good answer.

Conservative or liberal, there is general consensus that these are important issues that need debate, discussion and action. And don’t misunderstand, all of that will happen at the 2005 Legislature. It just won’t be adequate to provide a solution that lasts longer than the state’s budget biennium.

Which brings us to 2007, when the cycle is complete and we start the same dance all over again. I don’t mind waltzing once in awhile; it’s a familiar and comfortable dance, and I certainly know the steps. But boy, it sure would be a new adventure to liven things up a bit and do the samba!

Jennifer Crowe
Jennifer Crowe is a communications consultant in Northern Nevada and a former political reporter and editorial writer for the Reno Gazette-Journal.